INDIANAPOLIS — Multiple times last season, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett pointed out that receiver Miles Austin could have been more aggressive attacking the football on plays that ultimately led to interceptions.

Garrett seemed to imply Austin could have given more effort — something he didn’t seem to show when he failed to hustle back to the line of a scrimmage in the waning moments of a 31-29 loss to Baltimore last October.

But on Friday at the NFL scouting combine Garrett said that wasn’t an issue with Austin. Rather it was his health.

“I was really proud of him because he wasn’t healthy,” Garrett said. “He wasn’t healthy the whole year. And I saw a really good burst in him about twice and he still caught 66 or so balls and he was a productive player for us. He did it a little bit differently than we have seen from him in the past but he was productive It’s really, really important to get him healthy and going like he’s capable of.”

Like Garrett said, Austin made 66 receptions for 943 yards and six touchdowns in 2012. He appeared in all 16 games — suffering hamstring, hip and ankle injuries during the period spanning the beginning of training camp and the end of the season.

Garrett said the team has tried to work with Austin to make sure he doesn’t overexert himself in practice and in off-season workouts. Although there has been speculation that financial considerations related to Austin’s $8.3 million cap number could put the receiver’s standing with the Cowboys in jeopardy, Garrett indicated that he expects the wideout to be on the roster.

“We certainly feel great about Miles and the only issue we’ve had with Miles is simply the health,” Garrett said. “We have had a lot of discussions with Miles. It’s a very comprehensive discussion. Hydrating is certainly part of it. Protecting Miles from himself is certainly a part of it. Miles’ greatest strength is that he views himself as a college free agent from Monmouth University. He’s going to run through that wall for every single day because that’s [his] mentality…So we’ve got to teach him a little bit and we’ve tried to do that – tried to protect him from himself.”

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